Tour de France 2018 Stage 7 live stream: Watch online
By Zach Bigalke
After several days of hilly racing, the Tour de France returns the roads to the sprinters on Stage 7. Here is how to catch all the action into Chartres.
Home to the largest Gothic cathedral in France, Chartres has been a Gallic city dating back more than two millennia. The ancient city presents a stunning visage for the 2018 Tour de France as it concludes its first week of action, with layers upon layers of history.
Chartres has already hosted Tour de France stage finishes several times in the 21st century. Most recently, the penultimate day of the 2012 Tour de France featured an individual time trial that concluded in Chartres. Bradley Wiggins won the stage as the last rider on the course, consolidating his hold on the yellow jersey before riding into Paris the following day.
The last road stage to finish with a sprint in the city came back in 2004, when Stuart O’Grady won ahead of five other breakaway riders. That day Thomas Voeckler rode his way into the yellow jersey. Voeckler held on to the top spot in the general classification for the next 10 stages, dazzling the French public and a global audience before Lance Armstrong retook the prize in the Alps.
Who might win the stage this year? There is only one categorized climb, the fourth-category Côte de Buisson de Perseigne that rises at an average of less than four percent grade and runs less than a mile.
On paper it looks like a stage for sprinters, with a long false-flat finish into Chartres. But crosswinds allowed a breakaway to get away in 2004, and the same thing could happen 14 years later. A smaller selection could end up contesting this year’s finish into the old city in the Loire Valley. And, in the process, we could also see a new cyclist in yellow by the end of the stage.
How to watch the stage
Here is how to catch Stage 7 at the Tour de France live on July 13. The action from Fougères to Chartres will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network. Live streaming of the action is available on NBC Sports Gold or FuboTV.
- Date: Friday, July 13, 2018
- Start time: 5:50 a.m. ET
- Start: Fougères, France
- Finish: Chartres, France
- TV Info: NBC Sports Network
- Live Stream: NBC Sports Gold, Fubo.TV
The final day of the first week of racing at the Tour de France could see the skies open up. The possibility of rain in Fougères increases leading up to the start just after noon local time. All along the route, ominous clouds are likely to loom. Coupled with the wind that is likely to form echelons on the road, we could see precipitation causing some spills on this ride to Chartres.
Next: Tour de France 2018 route breakdown and highlights
The big question is whether or not the peloton will be ready to allow a split to get away completely on a breakaway. It happened 14 years ago into Chartres, and it could happen again. That opens the door for a rider further down the general classification to have a big day.
The sprinters will do everything in their power to prevent that from happening. But if the support systems in place break down and a breakaway gets away, it will likely be a strong one-day specialist currently in the bottom half of the general classification that manages to get into the successful break. Look for someone like Niki Terpstra, currently more than seven minutes behind the GC leaders, to feature at the finish.